Santos and Ningbo Zhoushan Sign Agreement for Offshore Soy Transshipment Studies

The Port Authority of Santos, the company responsible for the public infrastructure of the Port of Santos, signed a memorandum of understanding with the Chinese port of Ningbo Zhoushan for studies on offshore transfer of soybean cargo already along the coast, an activity that would increase transport efficiency.

The objective is to allow "capesize" vessels, which carry more than 150,000 tons, to receive cargo loaded at the Santos pier from smaller vessels at high sea. The largest bulk carriers that dock in Santos are 80,000 tons. Offshore transshipment would allow for lower freight costs and also increase the speed of the operation, as ships could return faster to receive new cargo.

The agreement between Santos and Ningbo provides for studies to implement this loading model, through a bilateral working group for information exchange.

Ningbo Zhoushan is the largest port in the world in terms of cargo tonnage, with an annual movement exceeding 1.4 billion tons/year.